identity

An increasing number of ancestry test customers are discovering that their biological parents may not be the people who raised them. Surprising DNA test results have challenged individuals’ understanding of their racial and ethnic identity, highlighting the subjective and complex nature of these categories. Genetic ancestry companies are urged to use terminology that clearly distinguishes between ethnicity and genetic ancestry. As people uncover previously unknown heritage, they are compelled to explore and understand their roots in a socially constructed world of race and ethnicity.